


Diana's birthday is no cakewalk

by Tamachii



Category: Little Witch Academia
Genre: Akko puts on a show alright, Comedy, Diana is a tease, Diana's Birthday, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Gen, How Do I Tag, I Don't Even Know, I Tried, I know it's late, I may have liked this idea a little too much, I was given permission to write this, Inspired by a comic, One Shot, Post-Canon, Pre-Relationship, Surprise Ending, Why Did I Write This?, borrowed the idea, everything I write is secretly crack, oblivious!Akko, ran off with it like I was running a marathon, rated T because I'm an anxious mess, the author knows nothing of romance, this is technically a friendship story, vague time skip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2021-03-03 06:02:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24030073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tamachii/pseuds/Tamachii
Summary: Akko had a plan to make sure this would be one birthday Diana never forgot...~~~Inspired by a comic drawn by superevilbadguy over on tumblr. Link in the Author's Notes.Also, calling it 'Piece of Cake' was a bit too on the nose, but I love puns too much not to try and use one for all of my stories that get uploaded here.
Relationships: Diana Cavendish/Atsuko "Akko" Kagari
Comments: 2
Kudos: 69





	Diana's birthday is no cakewalk

**Author's Note:**

  * For [superevilbadguy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/superevilbadguy/gifts).



> Hi guys, Tamachii here! I have successfully managed to write a one-shot, so that's an accomplishment I am rather proud of. This story was inspired by the super talented superevilbadguy and she gave me permission to write a fanfic based on her comic for Diana's birthday. Go check it out on her tumblr page (and follow her!) Also, I really hope I did the idea justice, it was so cute and I couldn't help myself. I hope it makes you smile..!
> 
> Here's a link to the comic in question, I strongly recommend giving a view (and a like!) for context.  
> https://superevilbadguy.tumblr.com/post/616835959474012160/happy-birthday-diana-d-aint-she-sweet

Today was the big day, when all of her hard work would finally pay off. Thanks to her habit of sneaking into the kitchens late at night and having to be sneaky about what she took and avoid detection, a certain brunette with a fondness for sweets had grown rather familiar with the layout and knew where pretty much everything was kept. On a specific night when the moon itself was hiding, and under the cover of darkness in the early hours – when any other sane student of the now well-known school would be in bed and fast asleep – she made her move.

Bringing magic back into the world and being the so-called savior of it didn't break her of her bad habits, and she was gradually improving her skills with both spell-casting and stealth, with the latter being provided by a certain red-haired American after a particularly close call and the strongest puppy-dog eyes Akko had ever conjured in her life. Amanda had reeled back at the sight and quickly covered her eyes, saying she'd give some tips if Akko promised to never do that again. Akko was only too happy to agree and with a long sigh from the taller girl, she provided a couple demonstrations and then rage quit when some passing students giggled at how ridiculous she looked. Akko probably should have waited until it wasn't daylight hours and the middle of the hallway, but she was rather insistent and Amanda knew that when Akko got some silly idea into her head, anyone would be hard-pressed to change her mind about it.

Moving as quietly as she could through the hallways, keeping to the shadows and on alert for the sounds of Professor Finnelan’s footsteps, which she was well acquainted with, she made her way to the doorway of the kitchens and went inside. Allowing herself a moment to breathe, she muttered a spell that made the tip of her wand glow and scanned the room for her partners in crime. Lotte and Sucy were fast asleep back in their dorm room, partially because she didn't want to ask them for help with this particular task but mostly because she wouldn't hear the end of it if she did. Frowning at the thought, a shifting shadow at the edge of her wand’s beam of light caught her attention and she walked over to the source of it.

“You guys ready?” she whispered, smiling when her assistants sent her individual thumbs-ups. “Good, let’s get to work. I’m sure she’s going to love it!”

~*~

The sun was starting to rise by the time Akko had managed to put the finishing touches on her masterpiece and the group took a minute to step back and really take in the finished product. After careful consideration, from multiple angles, including one where she nearly fell over from tilting her head too far to the side, Akko proudly put her hands on her hips and smiled at her creation. But this was a group effort, and she glanced around at the Stanbots that were there to supervise and offer up help with the smaller details. (Without witnesses to counter that claim, no one needed to know she was only allowed to write the words that appeared on the side in dark blue.)

One of the robots was repeatedly poking her in the forearm and brought her back from whatever fantasy she was having about the person who would be receiving this gift later that day and back down to the kitchens where she was standing, with a goofy grin on her face.

“Hey, watch it, Stanbot! What’s your problem?”

The Stanbot vaguely gestured to the room at large and it was with a look of guilt mixed with slight fear that she realized it somehow looked like a crime scene of flour, frosting and sprinkles. How that managed to be the case was anyone’s guess at that point but she smiled sheepishly and nodded.

“Y-yeah, you’re right. We better clean up before the Staff catches us again.”

The Stanbots gave her a look that would have been described as deadpan if they were humanoid, but then they all quickly got to work cleaning up her mess. Akko tried to help but had a tendency to make it worse so one of them handed her a candle and pointed to the top of the six-tier monstrosity she had requested. Pouting slightly, she took it and spent a little while trying to find the exact center so that everything would look perfect for her target. By the time the robots were done cleaning up, the one stationed at the doors as a guard gave the signal that someone was coming, so they all froze a moment before looking up at Akko.

She nodded and grabbed the tray, moving as quickly as she dared to the back door and then they all fled the scene. The back door shut just as the double doors opened and the close-call had her heart racing. But in her haste to get a safe distance away and avoid yet another detention, she had forgotten something important. Letting out a sudden yelp, she whirled around and narrowly missed a collision with the robots that were right behind her.

“Ah, I forgot the matches! We need to go back and--”

One of the six Stanbots quickly climbed up her legs and landed on her head, effectively cutting off her panicked rant early, making her sputter in confusion as to why she was being used as a jungle gym before she saw it had lit the candle for her.

“Oh, uh, thanks? That works too…”

The Stanbot in question patted her head and then jumped down to the ground before they waved her off and then ran as a group around the corner. They needed to report back to Constanze’s lab because it's not as if the smaller, soft-spoken witch didn’t trust her, but…

Akko watched them leave but then shrugged it off and turned around again to get the evidence back to her own room. Walking carefully down the hallways and feeling confident that she wouldn't be caught for once, she hummed happily to herself. The sun was now above the horizon line but it was the weekend and most students liked to sleep in without classes forcing them out of bed, and Akko planned to fully take advantage of this upon returning to her own room. Lotte and Sucy were bound to find out about her latest scheme anyway, so she resigned herself to her fate and was so sure of her own success that she spaced out and missed the loose rock that just so happened to be in the middle of her path through the courtyard.

Stumbling with the sudden loss of coordination, and carrying a multi-layer cake that was about as tall as her torso hadn't struck her as a bad thing until that moment. Fighting to correct her balance, she also failed to notice that a certain blonde witch was wandering the grounds for unknown reasons and spotted her from a distance. Sensing trouble, she bent the school policy of ‘no running in the halls’ in favor of offering her dear friend a hand with what appeared to be...a birthday cake? Not the strangest thing, considering the other girl’s reputation, but after speed walking over to her, Diana spoke up to alert the other of her presence.

“Here, Akko, let me he-”

Akko had been so focused on her attempts to not drop the cake and could only mentally chant ‘oh no, oh no’ half a dozen times that by the time she heard Diana, it was already too late.

**_SPLAT!_ **

Time seemed to freeze in that moment as the reality of their situation sunk in. Diana stood in front of her, arms still raised in preparation of catching the cake with something other than her face, but she had fallen silent because it had all occurred faster than she could react. And her wand was currently on her desk back in her dorm room because Diana didn't think she would need it for her early morning stroll.

Akko, meanwhile, felt a cold dread fill her chest and could only let out a strangled noise of being fully aware that her death may soon be upon her at the hands of the blonde witch in front of her. A small voice in the back of her mind traitorously whispered about it maybe not being so bad if the circumstances were different, but the seconds of silence dragged out and Akko became increasingly agitated the longer it lasted. The sound of the now unlit candle rolling away brought her back to the present and she moved forward slightly.

“D-Diana?” Akko questioned, hesitantly, but was only met with silence.

It was rather unnerving that the blonde had still not moved or reacted at all to the events and Akko shivered with a sudden cold chill running up her spine at the thought that maybe Diana was processing this and would she’d be on the receiving end of one of the ice age-level glacial glares that Amanda so often ran from, one of the only things that kept the unruly, mischievous and arrogant witch in check. And if not even Amanda dared to go against such a display, Akko feared her chances of survival were looking rather grim indeed.

In response to that, she reached up and did something only she would think of to diffuse the tense air surrounding them both. She drew a smiley face in the frosting currently caked on to the other girl and laughed nervously.

“H-heh...h-happy birthday?”

At long last, Diana seemed to have restarted her system and it was with the most impressive display of self control she could muster that she was able to remain calm throughout the whole ordeal. Her training as the eventual Head of Household was clearly being put to the test, but not even Diana could have foreseen such a turn of events. Wiping the frosting from around her eyes so that she could safely open them again, she looked down at the brunette and sent her a look that was both hard to read and also highly unamused.

“Akko…”

The girl in question stood up straight and saluted reflexively, not wishing to risk further angering the school’s star student.

“Please go and fetch me a towel.”

  
  


After a rather displeased look was directed at the frosting on her hands, Akko mutely nodded and took off running. Diana couldn't speak up quickly enough to remind her not to run in the halls, and she was already out of sight before too long, leaving Diana alone with her thoughts and the stickiness of her hands and face. She was a Cavendish, and would not allow herself to ruin even more of her uniform by wiping the mess onto it, regardless of the fact that she would be using magic later to get rid of any remaining evidence of this unfortunate accident.

  
  


With little choice left to her, the blonde witch looked around at the mess at her feet and smiled softly when she thought of the kind gesture and thoughtfulness that was Akko’s latest creation. True, it was far too ruined at that point to save or restore, even if magic were involved, but it was clearly a heartfelt gift all on its own, and the warmth that occupied her chest now made it hard to stay mad at her dear friend. It may have been her birthday, but after so many years of quietly celebrating with little more than well wishing from Hannah, Barbara and Anna (her aunt couldn't be bothered with such trivial things as sending a card), it was certainly going to take some time to adjust to the idea that people actually wanted to celebrate the anniversary of her birth. But if there was one thing she knew about the resident hyperactive goofball on campus, it’s that something more was in store for her. The cake she was now staring at the remains of was a promise of things to come, and she found herself not exactly opposed to the idea.

  
  


But Akko had still broken several school rules and Diana was compelled to give her a reminder of this fact. And perhaps a small amount of payback, she may have seemed cold and distant to most, but even she knew how to have fun and allowed herself a moment to relax and show Akko her own mischievous side. It wasn't long before she would get the chance, as the excitable - although apologetic - girl came running back towards her with a large white and fluffy looking towel cradled in her arms.

  
  


As soon as she was within earshot, Akko opened her mouth and started apologizing and explaining at a mile a minute why she didn't mean for any of it to happen, she promised to be more careful in the future and was about to start cleaning the frosting off of Diana’s face herself when a hand was put up and effectively and immediately silenced her mid-rant. Most of it was uttered so quickly that Diana had only caught bits and pieces but with a determined look on her face, a flick of her wrist, quite a bit of the frosting landed in a splatter and made Akko flinch from the impact.

  
  


Akko blinked a couple times in confusion but noticed that Diana was now smirking in self-satisfaction and almost missed the single word explanation for the action.

  
  


“Payback.”

  
  


After a beat of silence they both broke down into a minor giggle fit and Akko handed the towel over for Diana to use first. She wasn't concerned by the blob of frosting on her own face, but she did owe her friend a real explanation so she took a deep breath and shared her thoughts in a slower and more relaxed manner.

  
  


“I really am sorry for accidentally throwing a cake at you, Diana. I know we haven't been close friends for very long, but I wanted to give you something special for your birthday. After all that you’ve been through, you deserve to have something nice today. And I did my best but it still backfired on me! Of all the days for this to happen…”

  
  


Akko smiled at her but by the end of it seemed to fully understand the gravity of her situation and would have spiraled down under the crushing weight of another failure if not for the hand that rested on her shoulder before it got too negative.

  
  


Glancing up at the now frosting-free face of her at-one-time-rival, Akko was caught by surprise by the look of genuine gratitude being sent her way.

  
  


“Thank you, Akko. I appreciate the effort you put into this,” she stated, but seemed to feel the need to tease her friend by adding, “but if only you put so much effort into your studies, perhaps you wouldnt still be struggling in classes so much.”

  
  


Any warmth Akko may have felt from the words quickly disappeared as a groan sounded from deep within her chest.

  
  


“Diana! Are you teasing me now too??”

  
  


Diana only chuckled softly in response, but then an idea hit her. Grabbing her shorter friend’s hand out of some deeply hidden selfish desire, but blaming it on her new idea and the urgency contained within the impulsive action, she ignored the sputtered and incoherent noises from the other girl. Smirking over her shoulder and walking quickly, but not running, she seemed oddly happy about something. And whatever it was, it couldn't be good, because that was a downright scary glint in the blonde’s eyes to go with the sudden death grip she had on Akko’s hand.

  
  


“Come with me, I have an idea.”

~ * ~  
  


It was later that same afternoon and the members of the Green, Red and Blue teams had all gathered in the courtyard and were seated on a couple large blankets, enjoying their own private picnic. Professor Chariot had also made an appearance for the occasion, but most of the students and other staff had already sent her well wishes and the crowd had dispersed, leaving the group to celebrate the rest of the party on their own.

  
  


(Diana’s idea turned out to be teaching Akko how to magically bake a cake. Akko stared in shock at her for a full two minutes after it was done, and Diana had to fight the urge to comment on how she could have caught flies with her jaw hanging open so close to the ground. A small part of her was proud for showing Akko a trick of her own, and it wasn't until Diana reached over and gently prompted Akko to close her mouth with her hand placed gently under the latter’s chin and applied a bit of upwards pressure that she snapped back to reality and launched into a session of rapidfire questions but Diana merely smiled mysteriously and walked away with the cake hovering by her side. All in due time, as she was already forming a plan for a future event.)

  
  


The cake had since been cut and divided amongst those in their present company and Akko hungrily devoured her fair share of slices. Diana watched her carefully making a mental note of this reaction but said nothing as she ate her own slice more slowly.

  
  


“Do be careful not to choke or hurt yourself. There is plenty of food, but I would hate to have to spend the rest of my birthday attending to you in the nurse's office.”

  
  


Diana chided her gently after Akko grabbed and all but inhaled yet another sandwich from the nearby basket that was brought just for her. Akko’s appetite, and her love of food, was rivaled only by her love for transformation magic and helping her friends. Chewing her large bite and swallowing quickly, Akko retaliated with what was meant to be a sarcastic joke, but went awry at the fact that her mouth acted quicker than her brain.

  
  


“Oh please, like I’m really in danger from  _ eating a sandwich _ . And besides, it's not like I’m going to drown and need you to kiss me to save my life.”

  
  


A silence so deafening followed that statement because it caught the attention of everyone around them, before they laughed at how predictably awkward Akko could make things.

  
  


“You mean CPR, you idiot.” Sucy drawled, but her shark-toothed grin betrayed her annoyed monotone.

  
  


Diana had been oddly silent, but looked concerned by the statement Akko made. 

  
  


“Akko, do you know what CPR is..?”

  
  


Akko flinched, because she had heard of the term, vaguely, once…

  
  


Diana shook her head and proceeded to discuss the meaning behind it, as well as other healthcare ideas. Akko paid close attention, quietly munching on another sandwich. But something didnt add up, and after a rather lengthy explanation on the more recent developments versus the way things used to be done, Akko was unable to keep up with most of it but simply asked in a confused tone.

  
  


“But we’re witches, why not just use magic for everything? We released it back into the world, so that just doesn't make sense.”

  
  


Diana took a sip of her tea, and smiled from behind the rim at her dear friend.

  
  


“Because, magic isn't a cure-all. And it only speeds up the natural healing process, it doesn't perform miracles. And as someone once taught us all, there are some things that require a...different approach.”

  
  


Akko took a moment to understand but her wide grin was worth explaining everything.

  
  


Amanda had been watching them during this, clearly bored already. She was lying on the grass nearby when suddenly her nose twitched as a slight breeze picked up and blew Diana’s hair into her face. Reaching up absentmindedly to brush it back behind her ear, she was surprised by the sudden invasion of her personal space by the group’s rebellious stealth master.

  
  


Was Amanda... _ sniffing her hair?? _

  
  


“ O’Neill,  _ what exactly _ do you think you are doi--”

  
  


"Hey Cavendish, why does your hair smell so strongly like vanilla? What'd you do, **bathe** in it?"

  
  


As Amanda laughed at her own terrible joke, a brief nervous glance passed between Akko and Diana, before they both looked away, and sported matching red faces when they remembered what happened that morning and Diana turned pale at the reminder that she had not yet had the chance to shower following her being assaulted by frosting.

  
  


Amanda stopped laughing after she saw their reactions and knew she missed something good. She spent the next ten minutes trying to pry information out of them, but neither budged on it. It was already in the past and Akko was far too embarrassed to relive it anytime soon. At least Diana had forgiven her for it, that was a good thing.

  
  


Seeing that no more information would be given to her at the time, Amanda gave a disappointed look and muttered something that sounded like “buzzkills” and turned around to the rest of the group for some other source of entertainment. The rest of the party went by in a blur after that, until the sun was about to set and the sky turned an impressive gradient filled with pinks, oranges, dark blue and purple. That was the moment Akko had secretly been waiting on and she wordlessly stood up with a look of determination on her face.

  
  


After grabbing her wand and walking a safe distance away, she cleared her throat and prepared for the performance she was about to give.

  
  


“Guys, if I could have your attention for a moment.”

  
  


The others looked over at her and their conversations stopped. Most of them knew what was coming, and they looked at her expectantly. She glanced over her audience and gathered her thoughts, having forgotten to prepare a speech ahead of time. When her gaze came to rest on Diana, she took a moment to really appreciate what led her to this point.

  
  


“Uh, I’ve been training a lot recently and I think I should take this opportunity to show you what I can do. It’s your birthday and I came up with this a while back, so I hope you enjoy it. And uh, that you see how important your friendship is to me.”

  
  


With that being said, she closed her eyes to concentrate and took a deep and calming breath.

  
  


_ ‘Okay, just like I practiced. I can do this…make sure she has a birthday she’ll never forget.’ _

  
  


Swinging her arm high above her head, Akko launched into a magic show that she carefully planned and practiced for so intensely that she could perform it in her sleep. 

(And the one time she did, Sucy had rudely awoken her by force. If there was one thing not to be tolerated, it was her secret stash of rare mushrooms being in danger because of a fire caused by the one person on the planet that was so focused on practicing magic, she wouldn't even let being unconscious and dreaming stop her. Akko had no memory of it, but the sudden bucket of cold water thrown at her was memorable enough)

  
  


She had definitely put a lot of her time, effort and energy into this plan of hers however. As she danced across an imaginary stage, showing off her tricks and everything she learned, she smiled and laughed and completely lost herself in putting on a show. While the different animals danced and played above her head, among a rainbow of colorful flowers and stars and other shapes, Akko was carefully directing them as if orchestrating a concert. Gone were the days when she seemed to struggle with controlling her performance magic, or so it seemed. If any mistakes were being made, no one seemed to care.

  
  


Diana was incredibly impressed and couldn't avert her gaze from the brightly shining girl taking center stage. Her heart was once again filled with warmth so overwhelming that her eyes started watering.

  
  


_ ‘All of this, just for me? How is it that you have made so much progress, in so little time? You really are special, Akko.’ _

  
  


The finale of the show was built up to and Akko returned to the center, right in front of Diana’s spot and looked right into her eyes before releasing the final spell. All of the sparkles from the fireworks seem to retreat back towards her wand and then explode outwards in an expanding burst of light that had Akko striking a pose while panting heavily and a light coat of sweat covering her face but she couldn't bring herself to care.

  
  


The words above her head were the most important ones, after all.

  
  


**Happy Birthday, Diana!**

  
  


After a slight pause, everyone went into a frenzy of cheering and applause, Diana shocking them all by clapping so fiercely. Amanda was busy cheering the loudest and missed the most brilliant imitation of a megawatt smile she had ever given and it was directed at Akko.

  
  


If she weren't already panting hard from the amount of energy it took for her to successfully go through all of that, she was sure her breath would have been stolen away by that one look from Diana. She smiled in return and bowed for her most supportive audience, not missing the fact that even Hannah and Barbara seemed impressed.

  
  


After the excitement died down and they all packed up to head back inside before curfew, Akko was walking next to Diana and reliving her excitement over how her hard work had paid off. Right before they all had to part ways, Diana seemed to be wanting to say something but was clearly hesitating. Akko looked over at her and saw she was lost in thought, so she jerked her chin over at the other hallway and they both walked around the corner for a slightly more private moment.

  
  


“So tell me honestly, what did you think of my show?”

  
  


Diana giggled behind her hand in response to the randomly timed question. After collecting her own thoughts for a moment, she looked down, directly into Akko’s shining red eyes, as bright as the sun - although that was likely due to a torch hanging nearby, Diana mentally shook herself out of any daydream that may have started while Akko was waiting for a real answer.

  
  


“It was certainly a surprise, and unexpected. But very much a you thing to do, so thank you. I loved it.” Diana said sincerely, and thanked the fire for covering up the pinkness in her cheeks.

  
  


Akko seemed pleased at the positive feedback and grinned, nodding her head.

  
  


Then, before she could process what was happening, Diana leaned in close and whispered something into her ear at such a lack-of-distance that her breath tickled Akko’s earlobe and made her shiver.

  
  


“In fact, I fully intend to return the favor when  **your** special day comes around. I’ll make sure it's as special as your gift for me.”

  
  


Then, like the secretly mischievous tease she was, Diana shifted just enough to leave a quick, feather-light kiss to the shorter girl’s cheek and walked away as if nothing had happened. The only sign was the rather smug grin she had now sported as she left.

  
  


By the time Akko had stopped short-circuiting and returned back to normal, she was alone in the hallway and was cloaked in darkness, save for that single torch that now seemed to mockingly laugh at her with how it danced around. As she stomped her way back to her dorm room, only a single thought seemed to occupy her head.

  
  


_ ‘Did that really just happen?!’ _

**Author's Note:**

> Oh Akko, when will you learn? Diana never saw you as a rival, but that doesn't mean this won't be a competition...
> 
> I hope you guys liked it, even if it is slightly late. And am I the only one who saw that comic and thought Diana would look incredibly terrifying if she actually tried to talk through all that frosting..? 
> 
> Also, huge shoutout to my beta reader Dr Hyde! You're still a saint for putting up with me, even on this one...  
> ~~~  
> If anyone else wants to chat and/or poke me, look me up on tumblr @ dark-tamachii


End file.
